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Al Franken: why repealing Obamacare is a dumb idea

Sen. Al Franken (DFL-MN) took to the floor of the US Senate to speak about repealing or defunding Obamacare. The House passed a continuing resolution (to keep the lights on at the federal government) that defunded it. The Senate passed their continuing resolution without the defunding language.

Obviously as a Democrat, he’s a supporter. But he makes a bunch of good points about what Obamacare will do for Minnesotans.

And, oh yeah, unlike virtually ALL of the Republican talking points on Obamacare, his statements are true.

Partial transcript:

“The fact is, if the law is repealed, a lot of things Americans like will be taken away from them. Americans don’t want seniors’ prescription drug costs to go up; and they don’t want children with pre-existing conditions to be kicked off their health plans—which are just a couple of the things that would happen if the law were repealed.

“Last year, more than 54,000 seniors in Minnesota got a 50 percent discount on their covered brand-name prescription drugs when they hit the donut hole. This discount resulted in an average savings of $644 per person, and a total savings of more than 34 million dollars in Minnesota alone. And we’re not done—by 2020, the donut hole will be closed completely. That would go away if we repealed the health reform law.

“And thanks to a provision that allows young adults up to age 26 to stay on their parents’ health insurance, 35,000 young people in Minnesota and more than 3 million nationally were able to keep their health coverage. Those young people would be kicked off their coverage if we repealed the health care law.

“Health reform also ended insurance companies setting lifetime limits on the amount of care that you can receive. So if you or a loved one gets sick, you can never be told by your health insurer, that’s it—no more coverage for you, go ahead and file for bankruptcy. And guess what—if Congress repealed the health reform law, that would go away too.

“I’m not saying the law is perfect. But if there are problems, the American people want us to work together to fix them, not to refight old fights.”